May 20, part 3

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Heading back to campus from the Walters.







The train station, captured through the back window of the car (hence all the weird lines).





We saw this apartment for the first time on this trip. It is very nice. Lots of square feet; lots of windows, lots of light. This apartment is the end of a wing of the building, so it has windows on three sides. The views are nice, too, especially to the north. Very pleasant.

Sitting in this chair, I noticed that my socks and shoes had the same colors as the chair cushion (you can't tell, but the insole in my shoe is the same dark blue as on the cushion....).





That night we ate at a place which focuses on "fresh and local."





Our popcorn aficionado had to try their offering, and pronounced it very good (if verrrry buttery). Interesting how the popcorns that are grown particularly for flavor have significantly smaller kernels than the grocery store kinds. Not a surprise, I expect. This pic doesn't let you see how small these are, but they are tiny. Much less than half the size of Orville's kernels.





Having just pulled the nettles in the back yard -- again -- a few days before we left for Baltimore, I had to try the nettle soup. Beautiful, but not much flavor. It had onion and radish in the soup, and all I could really taste was the onion.

So I guess I'm not sorry I've just been pitching the nettles I pull in the yard, rather than figuring out how to eat them.





My entree was this vegetable terrine. It was delicious. The little cakes are mashed potato, and they, too, were delicious. Isn't it pretty? You can see that one layer was asparagus. I love the way it looks in the slices..... The little pink cubes were pickled apple, I think.





Pork loin.





Venison.





Asparagus, roasted with bacon. (Yum.)





Scalloped potatoes. This, too, was very good.





Monkfish. Also good.





This was a very leisurely meal. They were VERY busy. I think they weren't prepared for nearby graduations and for being jammed full on a Wednesday evening.......... Every step of the meal took a very long time (not because we were dawdling, but because things just happened verrrry slowly). Some of the preparation was not as they would have wished, I am sure. One should-have-been-hot dish arrived cold, and one had clearly been under the heat lamps too long and was overcooked as a result. I would definitely visit again, and would hope for a less-busy time!

Night had fallen when dessert arrived, so these pics are awfully dark.

The decaf espresso.





Hot fudge sundae with malt ice cream and "almond crunch." The crunch bits seemed to me to be very toffee-like, and had more than a hint of coffee.





Rhubarb crumble, with brown sugar ice cream.





I very rarely get dessert in a restaurant, because I think restaurant desserts are grotesquely expensive. Particularly considering they are rarely any good!

These were the best pair of desserts I've ever had at any restaurant. Each was absolutely scrumptious. Wow. YUM.

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thankful for ...

... radar and everything else that makes it possible for pilots to safely avoid thunderstorms.



The dark blue line is the flight plan (which I watched change from a more direct line to this more easterly -- thunderstorm avoiding -- route), and the light blue line is where the plane actually was....



Isn't it cool that they can change the flight plan while in the air? We talked to a pilot recently who said that everything in the cockpit nowadays is point and click....

Also cool to be able to watch where the plane is (more or less -- they tell you the image is delayed 10 minutes) while in flight.



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May 20, part 2

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Across the street from Cazbar.... Books, computers, tea, coffee ... sounds perfect to me!





Next door to Clayton's..........





Heading north to visit the Walters Art Museum.



On the left we see the original Washington Monument.





Here's a closeup of the banners on the poles. Orange is nice with blue.....







I know I have seen this in flower catalogs, but can't remember what it is.







A better view of the Washington Monument and the church pretty much across the street.





We were all kinda tired, and there wasn't much time, so we strolled through just a few of the galleries.

Generally speaking I find all the reflections in art museums very annoying. I like this image, though. I think the reflections add to the other-worldly quality of the sculpture......





This interesting jug (and its fellows) were in a free-standing display case. Note their reflections, as well as their shadows........





The Walters has quite a few of these small (15-18"?) domestic-themed sculptures. I don't think I'd ever seen such small Greek sculptures elsewhere.





I think the Greeks have everyone beat, when it comes to elegant shape. I'm often not so fond of the way the elegant shapes have been decorated (painstaking depiction of battle scenes? no thanks..........). I like this more abstract treatment better. All in all, though, I think I would like best to just glory in the shape rather than have the distraction of decoration.





Effective display, no? You can see the light coming through all those tiny holes. Just imagine drilling each hole, by hand........





I love cuneiform.......





This one reminds me of



this, seen at the Chicago quilt show last month.





More excellent display.





I've never really understood the reason this sort of glass goes for the prices they mention on Antiques Road Show, but displayed like this, I think I have a better idea.





This elegant dog is displayed right next to an open stairwell, with a translucent curtain in between.



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May 20

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The 20th was another gorgeous day. This church was right across the alley from our motel room.







Looking straight right out our window. The busy road in front of the hotel could be glimpsed if one looked left.





Driving back to campus.

Giant parking lot on the left turns out to be ... Pimlico!

We were only a bit too late to be there when Rachel Alexandra gave the boys dust to eat as she won the Preakness. And thank goodness -- the traffic would have been MUCH worse then!



Part of the route from our motel to campus went through a pretty sketchy area. Row houses with seven out of eight boarded up........ There were lots of stop lights in that area, so at night when we drove back to the motel, we took the expressway instead of the surface roads. The surface route wasn't scary in full daylight, but we didn't want to find out what it was like at night.



Back on campus for a special presentation.





We were entertained as we waited. I should look for a cd of harp music......



There was a reception after the presentation. We stuck to fruit, for the most part (couldn't resist a skinny sliver of very good cheesecake!), as we had lunch plans....



I need to keep reminding myself that I don't strictly have to be on foot to get pics that capture buildings.

Here are some glimpses of our trip downtown, all taken from the car, and most taken from a moving car.....

Lots of (expensive!) houses built of this nice warm stone.







Tons of rowhouses, as one might expect from a city the age of Baltimore. They are found in every kind of neighborhood, from the verrrrrry ritzy to the sort one doesn't really want to drive through after dark.

So interesting, to a midwesterner, to see all the different styles........











I love these colors, but can't help but feel it is way too much makeup for this elegant lady............





Interesting when such different styles touch......







Of course there are big buildings, too.





Alas, my lunchtime food-blogging intentions were overwhelmed by my enjoyment of the food. Cazbar has homemade pita! I've never really thought pita was anything special, but at Cazbar it was delicious. Thicker and more bread-like.... My better half had basil dressing for his salad, which was incredibly good as a homemade pita dip..... I had eggplant, which was good, but not as exotic as things others had. Unfortunately, without pics, I am forgetting what that was. It was all very good indeed.

As was the baklava. It wasn't as sweet as some -- some rosewater instead of all honey, perhaps? It was verrrrry good.



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